Leadership Tip #1 - Solve Problems

Solving problems is one trade mark of a leader (according to the newspaper article I saw).

My favorite method of solving problems is pondering solutions to obstacles while horizontally postured. Haha, the best time for me to think happens to be at night as well.

The hotel bed as illustrated was an excellent place for me to calmly arrange my thoughts for the few nights I was in Singapore. The quiet allowed me to spend some time in reflection. Helped me to make a few important decisions.

One thing I encourage, take time off once in a while to reflect and relax. It will clear your mind for future decision making.

Newspaper resources

Caught this in a local paper. Some tips for leaders ...
1. Solve problems
2. Think of the big picture
3. Be proactive
4. Make decisions and take responsibility
5. Share your vision
6. Remember it's not all about you.

Pondering about them now. My thoughts on them later.

Have a great day ahead!

Condiments: The small things count, sometimes

While having breakfast at the airport, I glanced over at the condiments counter. I realize that the only items I take from it are creamers for my coffee and the stirrer.

Then I continued to look as I see others take huge globs of ketchup and chilli sauce. Then they come back to take packets of sugar, creamer and basically anything else in the counter. Wow, that's a lot of condiments.

Each of us have a need to complete our meals in our own ways, I guess. Some need more some need less some need none.

This reminds me of a time when I was conducting a training session with a few friends. As trainers, we all had our own styles and use our own variety of props and presentation styles.

One was heavily using PowerPoint presentations, flip charts and markers to draw diagrams. Another was purely verbal and uses his superior language and oratory skills to get his point across. Another lady trainer very wisely used games, videos, audio interviews to highlight learnings. The whole seminar was a great example of many meals put together to suit different styles of learning and therefore brought out the best of the group.

So it does not matter what are your choice of condiments. As long as the meal is appropriately appreciated, that counts.

Burgers and Fries

Having lunch on Friday was nice. Not many people around, so with 3 colleagues went to Morganfields for a huge burger. Nice!

Most burger meals nowadays come with fries and a drink. Bundling of products not only happens for food. It is happening across many different industries. The leaders of the pack started the practice and many followed as it was a good practice for companies, profitable.

Therefore as an aspiring leader, I was also recommended to read deeply, about great leaders today and in the past. Find out what they did, how they did it and why they did it.

That's one of many good ways to learn.

Surprise Gifts

Valentines Day just passed. I received a surprise gift from my wife. So cute! So sweet! I was touched. I have been so busy the last few months that I forgot about the occasion.

These little gestures of love and care remind us (and definitely reminded me) about the priorities of life. What are the important things. While being busy at work has always been a given, there are times when we (I, at least) need to remember my motivation for being busy in the first place, i.e. my family.

Therefore, as an aspiring leader, I learnt today that I have to always check my motivations, lest I veer off course, and work hard for the wrong reasons.

The whys are more important that the other questions, at least as a basis of life.

Happy Valentines Day! Remember your priorities.

A little late night nutrition

Supper is not usually good for health. It is a meal usually consumed late at night, when one is either supposed to be sleeping or one is supposed to be sleeping.

I was hungry and thirsty last night and decide to go for a quick bite at a nearby shop. The "roti telur cheese" was great. Excellent if I may say so again. Hunger got the better of me and my supposedly sound judgment.

This made me wonder how often I made decisions based on "hunger" and impulse rather than in sound rationale. Like my hunger, I guess we need to be continuously fed with good information and knowledge so that when the time comes which require us to make quick decisions, we are not given in to impulse but are ready to make wise calls.

Solution: Always feed ourselves with good input, read well and wide. Read deep and detailed. Get to know relevant topics generally via news articles, blogs, videos etc and also immerse yourself in specific important topics to bring yourself to an expert level.

So as I was enjoying my supper, I am reminded to have good healthy meals throughout the day to sustain me well.

Reunion Dinners

The reunion dinner is an important time of centering back on the family. When family members from different generations and different locations around the world gather together once a year to "reunite".

The "Yee Sang" is a common menu item in Malaysia which is to symbolize the gathering of hope, luck and blessing to the family.

Similarly in life. There is always a need to regroup and realign yourself. Many do that at the end of the year. Some do it a the beginning. It doesn't matter when as long as we do.
The importance of refocusing and reminding ourselves of our priorities and what is important in our lives cannot be ignored. Only when we know who we truly are and what we believe in can we be successful in our life's goals and endevours.

To a great year ahead!

New Life!

My cousin just became a dad yesterday. I just visited his wife and son in the hospital ward today. It brought back memories of the time I had my daughter 4 years ago and my son 2 years ago.

Congrats cousin! Having children is an awesome experience and responsibility. Tiring but well worth all the sweat and tears. The joy it brings to raise your own children cannot be explained. At least not by me.

As I continue along my leadership journey, I realize that being a parent makes you a de facto leader for your kids whether you like it or not. That means I have daily opportunities to practice the skills required to be a good leader.

Someone once told me, make the most of it. Don't worry, I will.

Waiting

Waiting, happens to many of us many times in our lives. First sign of impatience? Frustration. Then anger. Then thinking of revenge. Then...

It will only spiral downwards. So STOP that spiral at the top. Just before impatience kicks in, distract yourself. Chances are the reason you are waiting or the person you are waiting for is important in some way. So if waiting is not an option, here are some things you can do while waiting:

1. Bring a good book to read;
2. Read a magazine or paper;
3. If you have a smart phone or tablet, you may:
A. Listen to a good podcast;
B. Read a good blog that you subscribe to;
C. For fun, play a game;
D. Listen to some favorite music;
E. Listen to an audio book;

4. If you are sitting in a public place, observe human interactions around you

5. And many more.

There are countless beneficial things you can do while waiting that will pass the time while keeping you sane.

Remember patience is a virtue that can only be obtained by waiting.

My quest for continuous personal development

I have wanted to be a trainer / speaker for a number of years now. Because I have always been very informal in the way I went about trying to become a full time professional trainer, I am still not sure today how close I am to achieving my goal.

I realized that I should be more purposeful in my quest. I guess documenting my journey here will help me be more accountable to myself. I hope that will be the case.

Also, the subject of Leadership has always been one that was of interest to me subconsciously. I therefore decided to journal my 2-prong journey here. Here's to the start of a new endeavor.